Ranking The Worst Love, Actually Characters
A classic holiday rom-com with some questionable characters.
Let’s get one thing straight: we love Love, Actually and all its well-meaning but unhinged plot lines. It’s a 20-year-old holiday classic that we’ll continue to rewatch for years to come. That said, in a film with an extensive cast of characters (and let’s face it, iconic Brits), there’s bound to be some duds. Here are the worst offenders:
Colin
Oh, Colin Frissell. We get he’s meant to be the comic relief, but sweet baby Jesus, is he grating. He travels halfway across the world (and to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, no less) for the chance to get laid. In other words, he’s a classic man. It’s cool, though. We know that sleeping with an entire friend group definitely caused some drama — so hopefully he got his.
Aurelia’s Dad
It’s a good thing this girl actually likes Jamie because Aurelia’s dad is ready to marry her off to him based solely on the fact that he “looks rich.” Minus 100 points for calling his other daughter Miss Dunkin Donut 2003. For shame!
Mark
We get it: unrequited love is the worst. Putting aside the fact that he’s an outright dick to his best friend’s wife and seemingly captures some truly stalker-ish wedding footage of her, Mark’s profession of love just comes across as desperate and makes us pity him. Why didn’t he just – oh, I don’t know – become her friend before they got married and slowly seduce her the way every other guy does? Now it’s too late.
Jamie’s Brother
Jamie is so pure (or maybe it’s just Colin Firth…) and seeing him get cheated on stung. Add that it’s his own brother and at Christmas? Oof. We think the uncle to hate on isn’t Jamie, but this clown.
The President of The United States
Boy do we miss the days when this was just a quirky rom-com subplot and not an on-the-nose reality. Not only is the President an asshole who bullied his way through negotiations with hot Prime Minister Hugh Grant (how dare!), but he’s also a major sleaze-ball to Natalie. We roll our eyes when he says “look at the pipes on that girl” and cringe when he grabs Natalie out of seemingly nowhere to kiss her. Simply the worst.
Mia
Mia is the opposite of a girl’s girl. She knows Harry (Alan Rickman) is married but simply just does not give a f*ck. She’s going for it. And not in a subtle, longing-from-across-the-room kind of way. In an “I wore devil horns and dressed skimpily to the company Christmas party and it’s all for you, sir” kind of way. With each brazen attempt, she fuels our hate-fire. Mia even dances with Harry in front of Karen (our emotional queen Emma Thompson) at the party. Irredeemable!
Harry
The late, great Alan Rickman sure knows how to play a villain. Harry takes the cake for the absolute worst human in the cast of characters. He has the most perfect wife and family, and decides to throw that all away for what we can only imagine is a short-lived office romance. He shops for another woman right under his wife’s nose (and chooses a truly heinous necklace), ruins Joni Mitchell forever, and all he can say when he’s caught is “I’m a fool.” Throw the whole, philandering man away!
Who do you think is the worst offender from Love, Actually?
Fat shaming parents and Prime Ministers should also get a hard side eye!
I just can't help it though, I still love Mark!